Fusion in Europe 1 | 2016 by EUROfusion

FUSION IN EUROPE NE WS

VIE WS

THE

PROGRESS

F USION

RESE ARCH

NEUTRONS: LITTLE PARTICLES 足 WITH POWERFUL IMPACT SNOWFLAKE AND THE 足 MULTIPLE DIVERTORS THE INFAMOUS LEAKY PIPELINE

2016

FUSION IN EUROPE Stare down: After the first hydro gen plasma shoot in Wendel stein 7-X German Chancellor Angela Merkel (right) looks at a computer screen to explore the data from the stellarator. IPP Director Sibylle Günter ex plains to her the details of the diagnostics at the Max-Planck- Institut for Plasma Physics (IPP) on February 3, 2016. Picture: Adam Berry / Getty Images

Contents

2016

Moving Forward EUROfusion 3 4 6 8 10 13

A historical shot, and now the answers Neutrons: little particles with powerful impact The evolution of the fusion roadmap Impressions Snowflake and the multiple divertors JET data put all in one place

Community 14 Practical: new master of fusion involves industry

People 17 Young faces of fusion – Luxherta Buz

Snowflake and the multiple divertors

Research Units Picture: Fusion for Energy

18 The infamous leaky pipeline

Market Place 22 Alternative fusion concepts: General fusion 24 Printed JET components

Fuel for Thought

25 Fusion energy is still on track for a global energy mix

Perspectives

Printed JET components Picture: © Copyright protected by United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

Imprint FUSION IN EUROPE ISSN 1818-5355

For more information see the website: www.euro-fusion.org

26 Fusion Writers Wanted

EUROfusion Programme Management Unit – Garching Boltzmannstr. 2 85748 Garching / Munich, Germany phone: +49-89-3299-4128 email: anne.purschwitz@euro-fusion.org editors: Petra Nieckchen, Anne Purschwitz Subscribe at newsletter@euro-fusion.org /fusion2050 @PetraonAir @FusionInCloseUp @APurschwitz

© Tony Donné (EUROfusion Programme Manager) 2016. This newsletter or parts of it may not be reproduced without permission. Text, pictures and layout, except where noted, courtesy of the EUROfusion members. The EUROfusion members are the Research Units of the European Fusion Programme. Responsibility for the information and views expressed in this newsletter lies entirely with the authors. Neither the Research Units or anyone acting on their behalf is responsible for any damage resulting from the use of information contained in this publication.

| Moving Forward | EUROfusion |

A HISTORICAL SHOT, AND NOW THE ANSWERS Yes, Wendelstein 7-X is one stellarator of a kind. Chancellor Angela Merkel inaugurated the fusion experiment with a simple push of a button releasing the first hydrogen plasma into the vessel. This push has taken international scientists more than eleven years to achieve. Wendelstein 7-X also raises a lot of questions: are we now one step closer to fusion powered energy on Earth? How can the stellarator Wendelstein 7-X support the upcoming world’s biggest tokamak ITER? And why did the shot only last a tiny quarter of a second? This issue of ‘Fusion in Europe’ provides the answers. The European Commission has contributed 20 percent of the stellarator’s total costs of 370 million Euros. A fact which pushed Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, Carlos Moedas, to speak out in favour of fusion (page 25). EUROfusion is currently readjusting its roadmap towards realising fusion energy. The main reason: ITER won’t meet its launch date in 2019 as Won Namkung, the new Chair of the ITER Council, explains in an interview (page 7). If your immediate thought was JET, you are correct! JET is currently preparing its second deuterium-tritium campaign and we asked project leader Paola Batistoni (pages 4 – 5) why this is so important. JET’s data is a treasure trove if you know what to look for. A new dashboard developed by Anthony Shaw, Alex Meakins and Matthew Car puts all the tokamak’s data in one place (page 13). Wendelstein 7-X will produce pulses which last about 30 minutes maximum. This will happen in about four years. The actual experimental period only continues until mid-March. Then, carbon tiles to protect the vessel walls and a so-called “divertor” for removing impurities will be installed. That is why the first shot was so short. Do you want to know what a divertor is? You will find the answer in the article “Snowflake and its several divertors” on the pages 10 – 12. Maybe you watched the opening ceremony of Wendelstein 7-X on the live stream feed from Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP). While some physicists excitedly waited for a first photo of the hydrogen plasma, others implemented another historical benchmark. The picture showing Prof Sibylle Günter, Scientific Director of IPP, and Dr Angela Merkel appears to be a good example of “Girl power”. As the entire world talks about gender equality in science, the event in Greifswald with two leaders in the front row might show the female shape of things to come. On the pages 18 – 21, Prof Günter shares her thoughts of the gender issue and why JET’s environment might again serve as a role model.

PAOLA BATISTONI Paola Batistoni is project leader for the next deuterium-tritium (DT) campaign at JET. The neutronics expert explains why chasing little particles is so important for ITER, the largest fusion experiment to come, and what it is like to guide scientists working in laboratories all over Europe.

LUXHERTA BUZI At the age of 28, Luxherta Buzi has already explored four European fusion Research Units. She has now landed in the United States where her work supports the outcome of the spherical tokamak at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.

MARTIN KEILHACKER The fusion society mourns the loss of Martin Keilhacker. The former JET director died on February 27th at the age of 81. The plasma physicist, who started his career at the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics in Munich, headed the team which discovered the H-mode in tokamaks in the 1980s before becoming JET Director in 1992. He directed the 1997 campaign when JET produced a record fusion power of 16 MW. Read more about Keilhacker’s achieve ments in fusion science here: www.euro-fusion.org/?p=76126

FUSION IN EUROPE

NEUTRONS: LITTLE PARTICLES WITH POWERFUL IMPACT

aola Batistoni is the project leader of the Work package containing technology experiments related

to the upcoming second deuterium-tritium at JET. She explains why these experiments are so impor tant for ITER. But to start with, she gives an over view of “Neutronics” and why studying little par ticles helps to support the huge tokamak which is currently being built in the south of France. Paola Batistoni, project leader of the new deuterium-tritium campaign at JET. Picture: EUROfusion

What is neutronics? Neutronics is a discipline which studies the complex diffusion of neutrons through matter and their interactions with nuclei. In a DT fusion reaction, a neutron and an alpha particle are produced. The neutron, which carries 80% of the energy produced in the plasma, is not confined within the plasma. It escapes and penetrates into the components surrounding the plasma chamber, mainly the blanket. Here it releases its energy which is then used to produce electricity. [See also the article: “Snowflake and the multiple divertors” in this issue, page 10 – 13] However, neutrons cannot be easily stopped; they are able to penetrate several metres into materials before they c ome to a standstill. As they move within the materials, they produce gamma rays, secondary particles and radioactive nuclei. They also create microscopic changes in the material structure which may cause degradation of physical and mechanical properties. We, as neutronics experts, support the reactor design with complex analyses, suggesting design configurations and materials that can be used to minimise the escape of neutrons and their negative impact.

Why is the new DT campaign at JET so important? The JET experiments are designed to reach and investi gate ITER-like plasma regimes of operation. However, the project also addresses ITER-relevant technology issues, such as the validation of neutronics codes that are used in ITER. We need these to predict their effect on materials, the occupational dose and the performanceof diagnostics exposed to high neutron flux. In the new DT campaign, internally referred to as DTE2, JET will operate with tritium and generate neutron yields large enough to cause easily measured activation in materials and degradation in their physical properties, as well as dose rates in the tokamak environment. By measuring these quantities and comparing them with simulations and numerical predictions, we aim to reduce the risks and uncertainties associated with ITER operation and maintenance. What will you investigate in particular? Our aim is for JET to obtain the first complete and consistent “nuclear case” for a tokamak using the deuterium- tritium fuel cycle. This includes the accurate measurement

| Moving Forward | EUROfusion |

Computer simulations are used to evaluate the neutron and gamma-ray fluxes inside and outside the ITER tokamak. This simulation shows the gamma-ray dose rate around the ITER equatorial port, where the Ion Cyclotron Resonance Heating (ICRH) antenna is located, about twelve days after the end of operations. As part of the JET3 campaign, dose rate measurements will be done at JET where a scaled-down version of the ITER ICRH antenna is installed. Picture: et. al. Fusion Engineering and Design, Volumes 96–97, 2015, 357–360.

of the neutron source and radiation field in the device and the surrounding areas as well as the effects on materials exposed to 14 MeV neutrons, the tritium inventory in plasma-facing materials, the amount and type of waste produced, and the occupational radiation exposure. I think we are addressing the key aspects of ITER for which we still have limited experience. We are working to obtain the best returns with this new set of experiments.

possible to find all of these competencies in any one single laboratory. Coordinating different people and teams is like conducting an orchestra that frequently performs via video-conferencing. It is not easy to keep everybody fully tuned and synchronised, but we also hold frequent meetings in person. We often gather for experiments and have the opportunity to work together, thus gaining a full common understanding of what we are doing.

What are the key aspects for ITER? Our experiments carried out as part of the current JET project will validate the state of art neutronics codes used in ITER. If you consider the size of ITER and the complexity of its configuration, extensive neutronics calculations are required in order to derive the neutron diffusion (and the diffusion of the secondary radiation they produce) from the plasma chamber through the device, biological shield, and the tokamak building. These calculations must be reliable and validated. We will use them to predict the lifetime of the components, the dose to workers and the amount of radioactive waste produced.

To what extent do these experiments support the progress of the European fusion programme? The JET experiments are devoted to the preparation of ITER, the exploitation of which is a pillar of the European fusion programme. But I would like to add that I am happy that, together with very expert senior scientists, there are many young European scientists and engineers participating in these experiments and analyses. They are gaining unique experiences working with a real fusion device that will certainly be very valuable later in ITER projects. I even would like to see more young scientists and engineers, for example, among those who work on the development of DEMO. Participating in one or more stages at JET would help them to better understand the real life situation within a tokamak working with tritium and p roducing high fusion power. ■

What are the benefitsand p itfalls of an i nternational network? I have always appreciated working within international frameworks with people maintaining different specialisations and complementary competences. Therefore, I have always promoted the widest collaboration possible in all of the projects I have coordinated. In the current project, we benefit from all fusion nuclear technology competencies present in Europe. It would simply not be

Watch the interview with Paola here: tinyurl.com/gqpfloe

FUSION IN EUROPE

Members of the ITER Council on the 17th meeting in November 2015. Picture: ITER Organization

THE EVOLUTION OF THE FUSION ROADMAP

TER’s delay necessitates to critically review EUROfusion’s fusion roadmap, finds Programme Manager Tony Donné and explains the advantages of the revision. Won Namkung, the new Chair of the ITER Council, informs in a corresponding interview why ITER’s new and official date has not been named yet.

POINTING THE FINGER AT MISMANAGEMENT

REVISING THE ROADMAP

It hit as a thunderbolt, the statement in the magazine ‘Nature’ from Bernard Bigot, who was at the time the newly appointed Director-General of ITER. He pointed the finger at mismanagement in his organisation and claimed major changes which were necessary to prove the feasibility of nuclear fusion as an energy source. Consequently, the fusion community waited impatiently for ITER’s new and official date for first plasma to be announced at the Council in November 2015. But the meeting ended without such an announcement.

Being aware of the upcoming delay and taking a c hance, EUROf usion had already decided to revise its current roadmap towards realising fusion energy in October 2015. The consortium which put ITER at its heart is currently renewing the document from 2012 with the help of five mission groups. Every three weeks, the experts meet, e ither in person or via video conference. “ITER's delay is a chance to check again what can be done in a cheaper way and at any earlier time using Europe's existing devices”, says Tony Donné, E UROfusion's Programme Manager.

| Moving Forward | EUROfusion |

IF EUROFUSION WON’T, ITER MUST In particular, the latest proposal to extend the Joint European Torus (JET) schedule to 2020 will strengthen investigations into the ITER-like wall. Moreover, Tony Donné advocates internationalisation of JET. This means, training future ITER operators in JET’s control room would ease procedures. Additionally, the European community would be able to test components for ITER in all of its devices and help with the design of diagnostic systems. “If we don’t take on challenges in fusion research beforehand, ITER will have to do it”, states Donné decisively. Bernard Bigot agrees: “I appreciate the consistent support EUROfusion has shown for ITER. Clearly, the ITER project will be going through a pivotal transition for the next few years, during which we need to work jointly and closely with our partners.” ■

Find further information on the ITER Council and all answers from Won Namkung online: www.euro-fusion.org/?p=75949

What is the ITER Council? Taken together, the ITER members represent three continents, in over 40 languages, with half of the world’s population and 85 percent of global gross domestic product. 35 nations have joined forces for the world’s largest fusion experiment to come: China, India, Japan, Korea, Russia and the United States along with 28 European member states (plus Switzerland) combined under the umbrella of EURATOM. Representatives of the members form the ITER Council.

FEEDING THE GRID BY THE MIDDLE OF THE CENTURY Europe’s fusion community keeps itself busy maintaining its goal to feed the grid with fusion electricity by the middle of the century. Fusion in Europe asked how the re-structuring of the ITER Organization is progressing. Won Namkung, Chair of the ITER council since the start of this year, speaks out in favour of Europe’s impact on ITER’s success. The ITER Council in November presented a number of milestones which have been reached so far. But the community is still waiting for a new timeline in order to adjust its work properly. What can you tell them? A new baseline is being worked on, to be approved at the June 2016 ITER Council meeting. The milestones are being used by the ITER Council in the interim, as a monitoring tool, to ensure that project momentum is maintained while additional evaluation is ongoing. Science journalist and fusion supporter Daniel Clery expects that the first plasma in ITER’s vessel will not be created before 2025. What do you say to that? We are projecting delays beyond what was stated in the 2010 baseline, which had initially predicted First Plasma in 2019, a date that was later revised to 2020. No new official schedule has been set yet. The Director-General has made a proposal, the Council is still deliberating; and the ITER Council has agreed not to publish until we have a “consolidated” date to which all parties agree. ■

Impressions Impressions FUSION IN EUROPE

IMPRESSIONS

Impressions

9 8

Heart shaped dust particle from JET‘s divertor tile – a result of ion microbeam analysis from the Croatian Research Unit. Picture: Ruđer Bošković Institute His Serene Highness Prince Albert II opens the Monaco ITER International Fusion Energy Days (MIIFED) and the ITER Business Forum (IBF). Picture: Christophe Roux/CEA ITER Director-General Bernard Bigot and Prince Albert II talking on the escalator during MIIFED. Picture: Christophe Roux/CEA First row: Albert II and Bernard Bigot listen to MIIFED‘s opening speeches. Picture: Christophe Roux/CEA A construction site: ITER‘s booth at MIIFED. Picture: Christophe Roux/CEA

| Moving Forward | EUROfusion |

11 10 7

German Chancellor Angela Merkel during her opening speech at the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) in Greifswald. Picture: EUROfusion 7 (from left to right) Bernard Bigot (ITER Director-General), Ed Synakowsky (DOE Fusion Energy Sciences) and Alexander Bradshaw (former IPP Director) at IPP in Greifswald. Picture: EUROfusion 8 Hungarian and German colleagues after the first hydrogen experiment: (from left to right) Dr Tamás Szepesi, Dr Gábor Kocsis, Dr Christoph Biedermann, Dr Ralf König. Picture: Wigner Research Centre for Physics 9 (from left to right): Prof Thomas Klinger (Wendelstein 7-X project leader), Prof Sibylle Günter, (IPP Director), Prof Otmar D. Wiestler (Head of the Helmholtz Association), Dr Angela Merkel, Prof Martin Stratmann (President of the Max Planck Society), Erwin Sellering (Minister-president of the German federated state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern) and Stefan Müller (German Federal Ministry of Education and Research). Picture: Norbert Fellechner (IPP) 10 Picture of Wendelstein 7-X‘s first hydrogen plasma on February 3, 2016. Picture: IPP 11 Plasma on the screen. Picture: EUROfusion

FUSION IN EUROPE

SNOWFLAKE AND THE MULTIPLE DIVERTORS

usion operations not only need stable and hot plasma, they also need an ashtray. An ashtray? – Right. A fusion ope rations produces heat but also ashes, in the form of helium. But the ‘ashes’of a fusion ope ration are tricky to handle.

A recent visit of the agency Fusion for Energy (from left to right: Emilio Ruiz Morales, Salvador Esqué, Aris Apollonatos, Carlo Damiani, Carine Van Hille, Philip Bates) at the Finnish Research Unit gives a feeling of the actual size of an ITER divertor cassette. VTT in Tampere deals with the remote handling of the divertor cassette mock-up. Picture: Fusion for Energy

The ashtray of a tokamak or stellarator is called a divertor. As the name says, it diverts waste particles out of the plasma directly into the trash with the help of magnetic field lines. What sounds quite easy on paper, is actually hard to achieve since we are dealing with temperatures ten times hotter than the Sun. This process therefore requires materials that are able to resist such harsh conditions.

| Moving Forward | EUROfusion | WHAT IS A DIVERTOR? The ‘fusion ashtray’ at the bottom or the top of a tokamak is a specially armoured structure containing the so called divertor plates, where the diverted particles come into contact with the material. The divertor is designed to handle the heat and particle loads thrown at it, but still requires frequent maintenance. Hence, in future devices such as ITER, it is built as a cassette allowing easy removal and replacement.

WHY IS THE DIVERTOR SO IMPORTANT? Firstly, it acts as a pump for the helium ash to prevent the dilution of the plasma. Secondly, it provides a specially armoured region to handle the power that escapes from the plasma. The energy can be thus moved away from the core plasma. This reduces the amount of impurities, as released through plasma-surface interactions, that are able to enter the core plasma. Improving divertor designs is one of the main targets of EUROfusion’s research. Mission 2 of the European fusion roadmap prioritises the so called ‘Heat-exhaust systems’. The outcome should result in magnetic configurations that will reduce the heat loads and ensure divertor materials capable of handling them. At the moment, EUROfusion is evaluating even more research projects which deal with heat exhaust and resisting materials.

DIVERTORS – NEW FOR TOKAMAKS? After the first fusion operations were carried out in the 1970s, researchers realised that plasma leaked out of the main confinement area. Although strong magnetic fields keep the plasma in place, some particles are able to escape and impact the wall of the vacuum chamber. They are so energetic that they can cause damage to the wall and, due to the resulting release of impurities, pollute the fusion plasma. To stop this, researchers incorporated a limiter. This was a protruding piece of material made of steel which protected the original vessel wall from the outer edge of the plasma. However, the

JG04.02-7c Picture: © Copyright protected by United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

limiter still produced impurities close to the plasma which flowed back in and polluted it.

X MARKS THE SPOT Instead of adding just another wall, the fusion experts decided to try working with magnetic confinement again. By adding magnetic coils they were able to create a zone where the field lines crossed, known as an X-point. The field lines are ‘diverted’ to form a so called scrape-off layer (SOL). This appears then at both outer edges of the D-shaped plasma. Inside this layer, which is separated from the core plasma, charged particles follow magnetic field lines into the divertor where they hit the above-mentioned divertor plates. Here, the diverted particles transfer their energy.

DIFFERENT DIVERTOR CONCEPTS The team of the newly set up MAST Upgrade is very proud of its flexible divertor concepts. Indeed, the tokamak will be able to transition smoothly from one configuration to the other by changing the magnetic fields appropriately. Those configurations have lovely names such as the Super-X divertor or the Snowflake divertor approach. The names are assigned according to the characterisation of the ‘diverted’ field lines, which form what are known as legs below the X-point. The magnetic fields Separatrix can be adjusted so that the length of these legs varies.

Closed magnetic surfaces Open magnetic surfaces

Scrape-off layer Strike points Divertor plates

X-point conventional divertor Private plasma these legs are typically quite 11

FUSION IN EUROPE In a conventional divertor, these legs are typically quite short and hence the particles do not have far to go before reaching their target and so do not lose much energyon the way. One or two X-points? The divertor can be located on top of the fusion device or at the bottom or even at both ends. ITER will have the divertor at the bottom of the tokamak just like JET (Joint European Torus) which is the only divertor device that has operated a deuterium-tritium campaign so far. As a result, ITER features a conventional “one X-point and one divertor” structure. However, there is interest in plasma systems with two X-points and two divertors. ASDEX Upgrade and MAST Upgrade, for instance, have this capability. Two X-points are known scientifically as “Double null divertors”. The Super-X divertor The Super-X configuration extends the legs and thus the particles travel a longer distance before reaching the target plates and accordingly interact more often with other particles along the way. In fusion terms, this essentially means that the power which hits the divertor plate is reduced greatly. It requires a set of divertor coils that extends and controls a long plume of exhaust plasma. The length of the plume allows high radio-active cooling b efore the plasma reaches the target. The Snowflake divertor The Snowflake variation creates more than the two usual legs. The power is separated into many snowflake-like branches which spread the particles out and reduce the load so that the existing materials are able to tolerate it.

EUROfusion’s researchers have been investigating the Snowflake divertor already. The recently enhanced TCV (Tokamak à Configuration Variable) in Switzerland is able to employ this special divertor approach. ■

For further information see the article “Snowflakes spread the heat” in Fusion in Europe, Issue 09/2012, page 13 or scan the QR code www.euro-fusion.org/?p=11437

Background A fusion reaction occurs when two light nuclei fuse and kinetic energy is exchanged between the products. This energy results in heat. The temperatures created in a fusion device are, on average, ten times hotter than the Sun. Future fusion plants will fuse deuterium and tritium and generate alpha-particles and neutrons. The neutrons carry 80 percent of the total energy. This energy is harvested for electricity production via the vessel blanket. The alpha-particles or the produced helium ash, still carry 20 percent of the fusion energy and will be diverted into the ashtray, the divertor, of fusion experiments.

JET has a divertor made of tungsten. Picture: EUROfusion

| Moving Forward | EUROfusion |

JET DATA PUT ALL IN ONE PLACE

Matthew Carr, Anthony Shaw and Alex Meakins (from left to right) created a dashboard which allows users to browse conveniently through JET’s pulse data. Picture: CCFE

“I wanted such a tool to exist!” – after two years of work at the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE), Anthony Shaw was keen to browse through the pulse data at the Joint European Torus (JET) just as conveniently as he can browse through data on the internet. Together with Alex Meakins and Matthew Carr, the group developed a web site which provides information about every pulse that has been fired in JET’s vessel. The main page enables the user to search through p ulse meta-data to narrow down the 90,000 JET pulses to a more manageable subset. If the user then clicks on one entry they will find the detailed pulse data including, for instance, a plasma equilibrium reconstruction and some overview plots. The Dashboard also includes the names of the personnel involved on the day, along with preand post-pulse comments, experiment names and some high-level numerics.

COMPLEMENTS CURRENT TOOLS “The Dashboard is seen as a ‘breadth’ tool to some of our existing ‘depth’ tools” – says Anthony. A large proportion of the data analysis tools used at JET are designed to delve deep into the specific physics data of a single pulse to really analyse what is going on. The Dashboard, conversely, is designed to represent a broad overview of many pulses in a way that is easy to browse and search, thus allowing users to pinpoint which pulses to analyse in depth. This has the potential to save the researchers a lot of time.

A SHARED SOLUTION This is not unique to JET; Matthew encountered the same problem with the Mega Ampere Spherical Tokamak

(MAST) – “MAST also has a large amount of data which can be difficult to navigate for new users”. He developed an early prototype for MAST which was then shared with and expanded upon by the JET team. Since then, they have added new features which are flowing back to the MAST group. “By exchanging developments, we have been able to advance both platforms very rapidly”, says Alex proudly.

EVEN MORE POWERFUL Alex, Anthony and Matthew now meet with stakeholders every quarter in order to improve their site. And the enhancements are ongoing. Currently, they are exploring which additional data might be useful to add to the page. Culham scientists are happy with the Dashboard – PhysicistMichele Romanelli looks forward: “Including physics parameters in future searches will make this tool even morepowerful”. Right now, the homepage is only accessible if the user’s computer is logged into Culham’s network. But this is about to change. The three researchers are working on a login based solution to make the data accessible to scientists beyond Culham. ■

The JET dashboard can be found online under http://data.jet.uk/dashboard, but so far it is only available to researchers at Culham.

FUSION IN EUROPE

EUROPEAN MASTER OF SCIENCE IN NUCLEAR FUSION AND ENGINEERING (University of Rome „Tor Vergata“)

MASTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY OF NUCLEAR FUSION (Eindhoven University of Technology)

PRACTICAL:

NEW MASTER OF FUSION INVOLVES INDUSTRY

f fusion is going to power the future, it needs a gene ration of well-trained fusion researchers and engineers. With fully dedicated Master studies in The Netherlands, The United Kingdom and the Erasmus Mundus Fusion Programme based in Ghent, Europe has already started to pave the way for a sound and organised fusion training programme. Specialisation programmes have also been set up in France, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Switzerland, Portugal and Germany.

| Community |

EUROPEAN MASTER OF SCIENCE IN NUCLEAR FUSION AND ENGINEERING PHYSICS (Universities of Ghent, Madrid, Stuttgart, Lorraine)

MASTER OF FUSION (Energy University of York)

Now Italy has introduced an innovation. In March, the one-year Master in Fusion Energy – Science and E ngineering will commence at the Tor Vergata U niversity in Rome. Its unique approach: To incorporate fusion related industry at a very early stage of research. Francesco Romanelli, former EFDA (European Fusion Development Agreement, now EUROfusion) Leader, has spearheaded the creation of the Italian Master programmewhich is strongly dedicated to the European fusion roadmap. His priority was to educate employees who had already enjoyed practical training during their studies and who have been trained by experienced industrialexperts. Fusion in Europe talks to him about the c hallenges, the European lead in fusion research and what it takes to be a good fusion student.

For further European fusion training programmes please scan our QR-Code https://www.euro-fusion.org/?p=74574

The newly set up Master at the Tor Vergata University in Rome will be financed by Italian companies. Why do you involve the industry at this early point? There is a strong incentive, also coming from the Europeanpolicy on education, to achieve the objective of ‘employability’ for students coming out of a Master and PhD course. Our Master/PhD track, linking the Master in Fusion Energy to the PhD in Industrial Engineering is one of the first of such attempts in Italy. It has alreadyraised interest among Italian businesses. They will finance six PhD positions which are reserved for those in possession of our new Master in Fusion Energy.

FUSION IN EUROPE ning of highly qualified personnel for industry. It has a duration of one year and it requires a qualification equivalent to a second level degree also known as laurea magistrale in Italy. What are you especially focussing on? The Master will give all the notions needed for a preliminary design of all the components of a fusion power plant. In each of the ten modules, the students will learn how to estimate all the relevant quantities that characterise each component of a fusion plant.

Francesco Romanelli Picture: EUROfusion

To what extent is EUROfusion involved in your master programme? Most of the lecturers come from the Italian universities, ENEA, CNR and Consorzio RFX. All of them are directly involved in the EUROfusion programme.

But can you maintain your scientific independence while having the industry so closely involved in your studies? Scientific independence is not at risk here. I rather see the benefit of experience that will be brought to the students. Practical experience which is gained by the industry involved in manufacturing ITER components.

Are there any exchanges planned with EUROfusion’s research facilities? We have already a number of students working for e xampleunder the Erasmus program in EUROfusion research laboratories outside Italy. I am sure that such an involvement can be further strengthened with the help of the Master/PhD track.

What is the most challenging task in setting up a new Master lecture? Such a new Master course must have a well-defined target. Our objective is not only to createpersonnel who are directly employable by industry but also to communicate a build-oriented approach to the students who will r emain in research. The Fusion Roadmap sets this as one of the main targets. We have to move from being science-driven and laboratory-based towards an industry-driven and technology-driven venture. Dedicated training and education initiatives are the main pillars enabling the facilitation of this transition. The proximity and strong connections between Tor Vergata and the laboratories of ENEA (National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development in Italy) ensure that all areas relevant to fusion research, and specifically those related to fusion technology, are properly addressed.

Will there even be scientific exchanges beyond European borders? Fusion is a global enterprise and China, India, Korea and Japan have a very ambitious programme in fusion. I look forward to an increased participation of non-European students.

To what extent are you collaborating with other European Master studies? Tor Vergata is part of FuseNet and shares its experience with the other Master courses held on fusion energy in Europe. Are you complementary or competitive? We are complementary. Our Master differs from those currently in existence insofar as it is mostly devoted to the trai-

To sum it up: what does it take to be a good fusion student? Fusion is one of the big challenges of science in the 21st century. A student must enter this field with a strong interest for innovation and for the interdisciplinary aspect of fusion. n

For fusion training and education possibilities in Europe check out the European Education Network in Fusion (FuseNet). It shares a list of programmes and coordinatesfusion educationactivities of its members (universities, research institutesand industrial partners). www.fusenet.eu

| Community | Young Faces of Fusion |

YOUNG FACES OF FUSION

LUXHERTA BUZI Luxherta Buzi’s private fusion map is already quite well explored. Having been to Germany, Belgium, France, The Netherlands and the United States of America, the 28 year old fusion scientist is a world citizen on a mission. The Albanian is chasing her dream of joining ITER while currently working at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, which enabled her to study the particle flux impact on tungsten surfaces. Luxherta Buzi. Picture: private

Luxherta, when did you first hear about fusion in general? I have always been fascinated by science because it feeds my curiosity for discovery and understanding. Fusion research is particularly interesting because it concerns the future of humanity. I was first intrigued by it during my high school studies. While learning about the phases of matter, I asked my physics professor what happens to a gas if you heat it to extremely high temperatures. At that time the explanation I received was the basic definition of plasma as an ionized gas and the terrestrial confinement with magnetic fields. Since plasma physics is not taught as a Master’s programme in Albania, I decided to apply for a European Erasmus Mundus scholarship. Your work is focussed on plasma-material interactions. In which laboratories did you pursue your research? I did my PhD on the “Influence of the particle flux on surface modifications of tungsten”. Therefore, I was affiliated with Ghent University in Belgium and University of Lorraine in France but the actual research was performed at the Forschungszentrum Jülich (FZJ), the Dutch Institute for Fundamental Energy Research (DIFFER) and the University of California in San Diego. I chose these three labs because their linear plasma devices generate particle fluxes that vary by several orders of magnitude, which was fundamental for my research. During my Master studies

I spent the first two semesters at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. Leaving Madrid and the Carlos III University behind me after the third semester, I spent my last semester working on my thesis at the Forschungszentrum Jülich. Why is your research important for fusion? This work addresses the effects of high energetic plasma particles on tungsten, which is the selected material for the high heat load components in ITER. What are you currently investigating? After my PhD I was given a great opportunity to join the Princeton University. I am currently interested in doing experiments on liquid metals, deuterium retention and the effects of impurities on lithium deuterium intake at the thus supporting the research goals of NSTX-U, the newly set up spherical tokamak in the US. What are your future goals? In the future, I see myself continuing with research that supports fusion programmes and other plasma applications. But fusion needs collaboration and for this reason I am happy to see that EUROfusion brings together researchers from many different European research units. n

FUSION IN EUROPE

Students 51 % Male | 49 % Female

According to ‘She Figures 2012”, published in 2013 from the Department for Research and Innovation of the European Commission, women do well off the starting blocks. They drop out once they reach the doctoral preparation stage or other levels which open the path for a research career. Picture: EUROfusion

Graduates 54 % Male | 46 % Female

2010

THE INFAMOUS LEAKY PIPELINE

ome say gender equality in physics can only be reached long after ITER and DEMO have come to life. You might debate the question of whether a gender balance should be mandatory for natural sciences; nevertheless, women still suffer a pay gap. Moreover, willing female researchers may get lost along their career path. The approach by the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE) now officially tries to remove discriminating obstacles within their organisation. A problem that not only Britain must tackle. Prof Sibylle Günter from the German Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) was just honoured with a prize for being a role model for women in physics. 18

| Research Units |

First post for a newly qualified PhD holder 56 % Male | 44 % Female

Researchers working in positions more senior than newly qualified PhD holders

Single highest grade

63 % Male | 37 % Female

80 % Male | 20 % Female

GIRL POWER ON THE WALL “It feels good to hear that I encourage young women in science”, says Prof Sibylle Günter. The current Director of the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics sips tea at the wooden table in her office. She is just winding down from a busy working week. Last Wednesday all eyes w ithin the fusion world were on her as the world’s biggest stellaratorWendelstein 7-X was inaugurated with the assistanceof no other than the Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel. G ünter is rather touched when she speaks about an email she received the following day. “One female colleague w rote to me explaining that she has put the picture of Merkel and me on her wall and named it ‘Girl power!’”. Günter can be called a ‘certified’ role model. At the beginning of this year, the European Physical Society honoured her with the Emmy Noether Prize for her “solid scientific record, many leadership roles and mentoring of researchers and students”.

Sibylle Günter. Picture: IPP

FUSION IN EUROPE ROLE MODELS TO ATTRACT ATTENTION The Emmy Noether Distinction for Women in Physics identifies role models able to attract women to enter into a career in physics. It addresses the fact that women are underrepresented in what is called the STEMM careers. STEMM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics and Medicine. Studies have revealed that factors such as encouragement from parents, interactions with maths and science teachers, curriculum content, hands-on laboratory experiences, high school achievement in maths and science, as well as resources available at home, play an important role when it comes to raising interest among young g irls.

Joanne Flanagan Picture: © Copyright protected by United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

20% OF EUROFUSION WORKERS ARE WOMEN Following on from the latest survey carried out by EUROfusion, which collected data from 25 of the 29 members, merely 20% of fusion personnel are women. Men outnumber women in EUROfusion when it comes to engineers, physicists or technicians. A higher proportion of women hold administration or legal roles. The EUROfusion ad-hoc group which conducted the survey of human resources compared the numbers from 2004. Twelve years ago, the proportion of female professionals was only around 12%. This has improved but is still barely above 18%. In general, the survey revealed that southern European countries do better in terms of gender balance in fusion research than northern European ones.

10% IN STEM ROLES AT CCFE EUROfusion’s member CCFE in England can provethe lack of female participation. The workforce on site comprises approximately 620 employees and 500 contractors. In addition, Culham sees around 400 European scientists visiting each year to conduct research, primarily on the Joint European Torus (JET), and many from outside Europe. According to figures from 2014, 530 of the employees hold in STEM (Medicine is not provided) roles, of which 190 are scientists and 340 are in engineering or technical positions. But the overall percentage of women in STEM roles at C CFE is o nly 10%. Taking the technical positions into account, women on site make 14.2%.

LOST ON THE WAY

10%(54)of STEM employees are female, but we are unevenly distributed by discipline

14% 8% 20

of scientists

of engineers/ technicians

But even if a female student proceeds along her way and starts a STEM career, the path might turn into a ‘leaky pipeline’, as Dr Joanne C. Flanagan would call it. Many women get ‘lost’ on their way from a PhD student to a post-graduateor even professorship.“It depends on the culture of every organisation but common barriers are, for instance, missing role models. Also, young women lack mentoring. If they want to progress in their career they need guidance”, says Flanagan decisively.

MIND THE GAP Flanagan is not going to take this anymore, at least not at CCFE. The mother of two is a member of C CFE’s self- assessment team which has one aim: to a dopt the principlesof the Athena Swan charter. Athena Swan is the British industry standard for equal gender r epresentation in the workplace. It addresses, for example, issues like the lack of gender equality in STEMM especially along the career stages, the gender pay gap, short term contracts for the retention and progression of staff and missing active commitment from seniors.

| Research Units | FROM BRONZE TO SILVER

PROSPER FROM DIVERSITY

The first step for Flanagan and the Athena Swan self- assessment team was to perform a gender equality ‘audit’ to identify problem areas and outline an action plan for change. A smaller work unit in the team is r esponsible for comprehensive data analysis. By collecting statistics of recruitment and career progression, the Athena Swan task force is able to understand how CCFE’s policies, procedures and culture impact gender balance. Flanagan and her team must have done well since 2013. In O ctober last year, the British fusion research site achieved the Athena Swan Bronze award. “This was a way of pushing ourselves to create a better environment for everyone to work in and it should result in r ecruiting and retaining more women. We now need to maintain focus, fullfill our commitments, and move towards our next g oal: a Silver award,” states Flanagan, while not missing a beat.

Consequently, she welcomes every male researcher who asks to take paternal leave. This year, the IPP has seven dads on parental leave or parental part-time. G ünter sums up her motivation to make it easier for women to return into the lab after the maternal leave: “Women do not approach physics any differently to men. But I think that a team built of male and female scientists will defi nitely prosper from its diversity.” n

ON PATERNAL LEAVE “From my experience, I can tell that there is a problem. We are trying to support young families within our institute”, says IPP Director Günter when it comes to difficulties for women especially after their maternity leave. When Günter had her daughter 26 years ago, she continued doing research and met her mentor at night. “Sure,I was l ucky to have a boss who was this understanding”, she confirms. “Nowadays the legal frame encourages dads also to take responsibility”, she proposes.

21%

of IPP employees are female

But only work in scientific research

Professor Paul Walton from the University of York pictured with members of the Athena SWAN Self-assessment team following his gender diversity talk at UKAEA. (from left to right: Chris Warrick, Andrew Wise, Margaret Graham, Joanne Flanagan, David Martin (Operations Director), Jackie Costello, Paul Walton, Brian Lloyd, Martin O’Brien, Helen Boyer, Kim Cave-Ayland, Alexandra Cackett and Rosie Hawkes). Picture: © Copyright protected by United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

FUSION IN EUROPE

Introducing

ALTERNATIVE FUSION CONCEPTS:

GENERAL FUSION “RETHINK FUSION”

FACTS

IDEA Plasma Injectors

Michel Laberge (Founder and Chief Scientist) and Management Nathan Gilliland (CEO)

Funding

General Fusion has received a total of $55 million from either governmental or private funding during passed years. Canada invested $10 million and $27 million came from Malaysia. In March this year, the company was awarded additional $12.75 million from the Canadian Government to continue doing research. Among the private investors are, for example, Chrysalix Venture Capital or Bezos Expeditions.

Headquarters

Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada

2002 Established

General Fusion follows the Magnetised Target Fusion (MTF) approach. This concept is a hybrid between magnetic fusionand iner tial confinement fusion. The goal is to form a compact toroidor spheromak plasma and compress it quickInjector ly. G eneral Fusion uses a spherical tank ~3-metres in diameter and is based on LINUS which is a fusion power plant concept originating from the US Naval Research Laboratory back in the 1970s. Inside the tank, magnetised plasma Hydraulic Rams is injected into a vortex of rotating liquid lead lithium. 200 pistons impact a shockwave which travels through the liquid. The wave compresses the plasma. Electric currents flowing in the plasma form the magnetic field. These are very short-lived (~500 microseconds). Accor ding to General Fusion’s CEO Nathan Gilliland, the current “is like a smoke ring, where the eddy currents in the air hold the smoke in a ring, but eventually they decay and the ring falls apart.” The centre of the plasma sphere releases neutrons which travel into the surrounding

| Market Place |

usion research benefits from its wide variety of researchers and approaches.Not all of the ideas and concepts belong to EUROfusion. For several years it were mostly private companies even beyond Europe who were trying to bring fusion energy to life. Fusion in Europe introduces different approaches in series and explains precisely what is concealed behind a catchy claim to attract private investors.

3 Core Liquid drain

Heat Exchanger

Steam Turbo-alternator

Core Injector Pump

Inside a spherical tank injectors shoot magnetised plasma into a vortex of rotating liquid. Picture: General Fusion

molten lead-lithium. The neutrons interact with l ithium atoms and are absorbed. The lithium splits into helium and tritium and heats up. Neutrons that reach the steel wall have so little energy that they cause minimal structural damage. The hot lead-lithium is continuously pumped out of the tank through a heat exchanger system into a thermal energy conversion cycle. The cooled lead- lithium will then be pumped back again.

OPINION

“General Fusion attempts to be transparent and communicates widely within the fusion community. In attending international conferences and pub lishing papers in peer review journals, they are open to debate their research. Their concept is scientifically sound Tony Donné visited General and seems plausible. Fusion in 2015 and shares Nevertheless, they face opinion on the concept. great challenges. For Picture: EUROfusion instance, they need to maintain a stable plasma state while accelerating and compressing it; and they also need to create a very smooth vortex without ripples. Also, the material used for the pistons must withstand very harsh conditions. The work is scientifically very interesting and it could well be that some of the work done by General Fusion will find its way into EUROfusion. Nevertheless, there are still so many hurdles for this concept to overcome that I am convinced that the time required to create a working reactor is much longer than what is currently being quoted.”

FUSION IN EUROPE

PRINTED JET COMPONENTS

left: This compact assembly holds several mirrors close to the plasma. It is used to test how dirty the mirrors get during the plasma experiment in JET’s vessel – information which is needed for ITER’s diagnostic. right: This tile support assembly for JET was produced using additive manufacturing. Pictures: © Copyright protected by United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority.

modern technique which can be used to make clothes, bikes or even ana tomic organs using a wide variety of materials was recentlyused to build f usioncomponents. The parts have been constructedespecially for JET’s vessel using 3D printing. 3D printing, also known as Additive Manufacturing (AM), uses successive layers of material to create a three-dimensional object. A computer controls the process. It seems weird to create a rather complex object “at home” using an off-the-shelf 3D printer but, actually, this technique is a great help when a small number of complex components needs to be produced in a short time.

TIME IS MONEY “The initial drive was to reduce costs and time”, says Valeria Riccardo, Chief Engineer at the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE). The two sets of tile support assemblies and the mirror holder have complex features to be aware of. For instance, the tile assemblies need to be able to slot into features of the vessel and then impose a large load on these so as not to slip off during disruptions.

INTRODUCING ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING The 3D printed components were installed during JET’s shutdown last year. “The usual method of production would have taken ages. Also, we would lose a lot of material and the costs would have been far too high. So, for

the first time, we tried the additive manufacturing with a company”, tells Valeria. And it took the team only four weeks from the idea to the product. The tile assemblies from which each has two AM parts with a combined weight of 1.1 kg and the mirror holder (about 1.2 kg) are made of AM Inconel 718, a special nickel-chromium-based super alloy which withstands harsh conditions. It has been used widely in gas turbines, for example, but not in fusion experiments.

LIMITED SOLUTION FOR ONE-OF-A-KIND PIECES The components were installed in summer of last year. Since then, they have seen a few months of plasma operation without any cause for concern. The ITER mirror assembly will be dismounted at the next shutdown, while the tile support assemblies will be used indefinitely. Depending on how many one-of-a-kind components JET would need to produce again, the engineering team might consider using additive manufacturing as a way of producing the requested bits and pieces. “3D printing takes some time. It is a rather useful way of only creating a small number of components”, adds Valeria. ■

Fuel for Thought |

FUSION IN EUROPE INVITES Carlos Moedas

FUSION ENERGY IS STILL ON TRACK FOR A GLOBAL ENERGY MIX Electricity demands are set to grow in the 21st century, so we will need new, clean, secure and competitive energy solutions in Europe and the world. Fusion energy is part of that global quest for a new and sustainable energy source. Securing clean energy supplies at competitive prices is an important priority for the European Commission and part of our Energy Union strategy. If fusion power can be rea lised within the timescale of our current roadmap − with a demonstration power plant starting operation in the early 2040s − fusion could become a valuable energy source in the second half of this century. Some of the world’s best scientists and engineers are now taking the first step on this journey, helping to design, construct and safely operate ITER, one of the most ambitious energy projects in the world today. The Commission is playing its part also. As part of Hori zon 2020, the EU fusion programme has set high stand ards in a goal-oriented roadmap and a comprehensive Joint Programme, and we are not alone. Solving global climate and energy challenges requires global action, and for this reason Euratom researchers are leading the way in the international effort to identify the right technologies to produce commercial fusion electricity.

The European Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, Carlos Moedas, was born in Beja (Portugal) in 1970. He graduated in Civil Engineering from the Higher Technical Institute (IST) in 1993 and completed his final year of studies at the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées in Paris. After obtaining an MBA from Harvard Business School (USA) in 2000, he returned to Europe to work in mergers and acquisitions at the investment bank Goldman Sachs in London (UK). He returned to Portugal in 2004 as Managing Director of Aguirre Newman and member of the Executive Board of Aguirre Newman in Spain. In 2008, he founded his own investment company, Crimson Investment management.

I firmly believe that by working closely with our inter national partners, we can reach our goals to make fusion energy a global energy for the future: making fusion energy open to the world. n

Three years later he was elected for the National Parliament and was called for the government to Secretary of State to the Prime Minister of Portugal in charge of the Portuguese Adjustment Programme.

Carlos Moedas, European Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation

In 2014, Moedas finally became Member of the European Commission.

n o i Fus writers d! e t n wa If you are

F u s i o n

antastic at writing English nbelievably curious killed at explaining complex matters using compelling metaphors nterested in learning how a magazine is made bviously curious etworking intensely in your community

you are more than welcome to introduce yourself to us!

Are you an enthusiast and happy to share fusion news with the world? - The “Fusion in Europe” magazine is looking for ambitious students to join us voluntarily. For our summer edition we want YOU to be our authors. You choose the topics, you write the text! This is what you get: ▶ Experience in writing for non-scientific readers ▶ Skills in crossmedia journalism ▶ Contact with Europe’s fusion specialists ▶ The opportunity to work in a multinational team ▶ A more diverse CV which includes your own texts published in “Fusion in Europe” Send us your samples and a short introduction by April 29th, 2016. Please upload your application here: https://www.euro-fusion.org/ collaborators/fusion-writers-wanted/

EUROfusion communications team · Anne Purschwitz · Editor “Fusion in Europe” EUROfusion - Programme Management Unit · Boltzmannstr. 2 · 85748 Garching · Germany Tel. +49 89 3299 4128 · anne.purschwitz@euro-fusion.org · www.euro-fusion.org

EUROPEAN CONSORTIUM FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF FUSION ENERGY

REALISING FUSION ELECTRICITY BY 2050

Ecole Royale Militaire Laboratory for Plasma Physics

Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

Ru er Boškovi Institute

Technical University of Denmark

University of Tartu

Technical Research Centre of Finland

Commissariat à l’énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives

Max-Planck-Institut für Plasmaphysik

National Center for Scientific Research „Demokritos“

Lithuanian Energy Institute

Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas Medioambientales y Tecnológicas

Austrian Academy of Sciences

AUSTRIA

DENMARK

GERMANY

LITHUANIA

SPAIN

BELGIUM

CZECH REPUBLIC

FRANCE

GERMANY

Wigner Research Centre for Physics

Dublin City University

Agenzia nazionale per le nuove tecnologie, l’energia e lo sviluppo economico sostenibile

ITALY

LATVIA

Institute of Plasma Physics and Laser Microfusion

Instituto Superior Técnico

Institute for Atomic Physics

Comenius University

Jožef Stefan Institute

Swedish Research Council

École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne

Foundation for Fundamental Research on Matter

GREECE

POLAND

SWEDEN

FINLAND

HUNGARY

PORTUGAL

SWITZERLAND

CROATIA

University of Cyprus

CYPRUS

ESTONIA

BULGARIA

Institute of Plasma Physics Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic

IRELAND

ROMANIA

THE NETHERLANDS

SLOVAKIA

SLOVENIA

UNITED KINGDOM

Our partners:

FRANCE

F4E

SPAIN

This work has been carried out within the framework of the EUROfusion Consortium and has received funding from the Euratom research and training programme 2014 – 2018 under grant agreement No 633053.

ISSN 1818-5355